A federal appeals court has cleared the way for President Donald Trump’s administration to fire thousands of probationary workers, halting a judge’s order requiring them to be reinstated
Appeals court clears the way for the Trump administration to fire thousands of probationary workersBy LINDSAY WHITEHURSTAssociated PressThe Associated PressWASHINGTON
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court cleared the way Wednesday for President Donald Trump’s administration to fire thousands of probationary workers, halting a judge’s order requiring them to be reinstated in a legal win for Trump’s effort to dramatically downsize the federal workforce.
The decision comes a day after a similar order from the Supreme Court in another lawsuit filed over mass firings.
A split panel for the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found the government will probably win by showing the mass firings must be appealed through a separate employment process rather than fought out in federal court.
The decision comes in a lawsuit filed by nearly two dozen states that had argued the mass firings will cause irreparable burdens and expenses to support recently unemployed workers. They said at least 24,000 probationary employees have been terminated since Trump took office in January.
The states could still seek further review as the lawsuit continues to play out.
The Republican administration has argued that the states have no right to try to influence the federal government’s relationship with its own workers. It has already reinstated, however, some 15,000 workers to full duty or paid leave under judicial order, according to court documents.
The Supreme Court also sided with the Trump administration on Tuesday in an order involving a technical legal assessment of the right, or standing, of several nonprofit associations to sue over the firings.
Probationary workers have been targeted for layoffs across the federal government because they’re usually new to the job and lack full civil service protection.
The states suing the Trump administration are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin.
